Efficacy of Best Management Practices as an Approach to Water Resource Conservation in the Mississippi Delta Region

This research addresses issues of water resources in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV) that relate to both water quality and quantity. This project aims to describe and quantify the benefits of BMPs, in the Mississippi Delta, using a stepwise approach that first broadly assesses current nutrient loads leaving agricultural landscapes with varying suites of BMPs, and then focuses specifically on the potential use of tailwater recovery systems (TWRs) for mitigating nutrient loss, including environmental and economic benefits TWRs offer. These new insights may result in management improvements, additional implementation, and may suggest a future course for BMP implementation in the Delta.

The main objective of this research is to assess the impacts varying BMP systems have on water resources in the Delta. This objective will be accomplished through completion of the following objectives: 1) assess nutrient concentrations and loads leaving agricultural catchments equipped with varying types and levels of BMP systems, 2) determine the capability of TWRs to mitigate nutrient loss using multiple systems and experimental designs, and 3) describe the potential benefits of TWRs through water harvesting budgets, nutrient recycling budgets, and economic analyses.